"If your technique is right, you're able to put your athleticism in such better use," Scott said. "But when your technique isn't right, it makes it that much harder to make a play."

Scott, who tallied nine tackles, an interception and a forced fumble last season, points to two areas where he's improved.

The first is his patience at the line of scrimmage, which allows him to stay locked with the receiver.

"That half-inch or that one full, couple inches that you move, it allows the receiver to get outside of you," Scott said, "but if you stay in front of him, it makes it that much harder for the receiver to get open and then it makes his route that much longer, so it makes him panic."

The second is being smooth in his backpedal, which then helps him drive to the ball if a pass is thrown his direction.

Scott missed the second half of spring practice with a tweaked hamstring, an injury he said first occurred during winter conditioning in February. But he said he has not felt any lingering effects during the first week of fall camp.

Scott and redshirt freshman Dashon Hunt were poised to stage one of the more intriguing position battles of fall camp. But with Hunt currently missing practice with, coincidentally, a hamstring injury, things have perhaps tipped even more in Scott's favor to solidify that starting job.

Yet Scott has set even higher goals for himself as a member of the Beavers' veteran secondary.

"I'm not just competing with Dashon," Scott said. "I'm competing with Steve (Nelson). I'm competing with Murph and with Zim (safeties Ryan Murphy and Ty Zimmerman). That's how I am.

"It's really not a big deal for me. I just want to continue to compete and try to be the best DB on the team."